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hi_miche's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
informative
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
litficchic's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
cdale8's review against another edition
3.0
I enjoyed the story and setting, finding it generally entertaining in a daytime drama sort of way, but the setting could have been so much more interesting if approached as an additional "character" in the book. Instead, the backdrop felt a bit flat and plodding -- this could really have been set in any foreign country covering the intertwined lives of single-income privileged Americans with horrible relationships and small children. Quick read, though, and after skimming the reviews here I'm glad I didn't opt for the audiobook -- seems like it would have taken the same amount of time to listen as to actually read this one, but with the added distraction of over-the-top voicing.
nssutton's review against another edition
4.0
So glad I picked this one up from the library after seeing it on bookstagram. It was clever and different from what I normally read. I feel like the last time I actively read satire was maybe high school? My only complaint was the poor queue timing, as I listened to the audiobook too to speed my way through it by after realizing a bunch of much anticipated preordered romances were hitting my Kindle.
ktringali's review against another edition
2.0
I felt compelled to read this book because the jacket read almost like a description of The Poisonwood Bible, and I had never read a book set in Nambia. I hoped for a meaningful story about Namibian people; instead this book was VERY focused on the white American characters and held the Namibian characters as secondary/reliant on the Americans. Very white savior and viewed through a white lens (so much of the book focuses on how much the Americans don’t like the country or the customs). The end felt like it wrapped up well though, so gave it 2 stars whereas the majority of the book was around 1 or 1.5 stars.
renaplays's review against another edition
4.0
Interesting, sometimes surprising, and generally fun set of cultural encounters.
vwx123's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.75
Slow story development, not much happening throughout the book.
fozzybear's review against another edition
5.0
This was such a funny book....I loved every minute of it! With all the shenanigans going on it was hard to put it down. There were always twists and turns, most of them somewhat unexpected. It really emphasized how laughable the things people can do are. It has some serious topics of course, but the author did an amazing job with the satirical writing.. There are author notes at the end, and it was really nice to read that she had actually lived in Windhoek, Namibia where this took place. She met many locals as well as US state department employees, all of whom she greatly admired, and made the comment that she hoped they’d forgive her for making this into such a comedy of a book.